Wild walk-off Wednesday

The Sweets rallied to tie the game in the bottom of the eighth inning and then won the game in the bottom of the ninth on a walk-off single to right field. The 5-4 victory is the third this summer over the Applesox and the Sweets first walk-off.

Now for some notes from around the ballpark:
- The walk-off victory for the Sweets is their first of the summer in a league contest. They won on a walk-off wild pitch in non-league contest against the Central Oregon Bucks.
- With the win, the Sweets improve to 17-24 on the season. They are 3-2 against the Applesox this season. They have three contests left against them this season.
- Kris Paulino stole the show on Wednesday, collecting four hits, scoring three runs and driving in the game-winning run in the ninth. He tripled, doubled and collected two singles, finishing a home run shy of the cycle.
- He tripled to start the eighth and then scored the tying run on an Alex Bonczyk sac fly.
- He is now tied with Spencer O'Neil for the team lead in runs scored with 18.
- Beau Fraser scored the winning run and also had three hits. He has six hits in his last two games.
- Tyler Billen started and lasted into the fourth inning. He allowed three runs on three hits.
- Zach Brandon pitched 4.2 innings, allowing one run on six hits. It was one of his best outings of the summer.
- Ben Ruff evened his record at 2-2 by pitching a scoreless ninth inning.
- The Sweets made three errors that led to a pair of unearned runs.
- Arturo Reyes will start tonight. He has allowed one run or less in six of his seven starts this summer. He shutout the Applesox on six hits over seven innings on July 3 in Wenatchee. He walked one and struck out four.
- The Sweets have won seven-of-nine against the Applesox.

Sweets start stretch run with Wenatchee

The Sweets begin their final 14 games of the summer tonight when they welcome Wenatchee. Walla Walla has enjoyed two consecutive off days due to the All-Star Game.

Now for some notes from around the ballpark:
- With their 3-1 victory over Klamath Falls on Sunday, the Sweets improved to 16-24 through 40 games. It was their first victory over the Gems this summer.
- It also snapped Klamath's 11-game winning streak.
- Joe Arlt pitched the first eight innings, allowing just one run on six hits. He struck out five and has struck out a team-high 33 batters this summer.
- He improved to 2-1 with the victory and has allowed just five runs over his last 12 appearances.
- Simon Anderson earned his third save of the year on Sunday, pitching a scoreless ninth.
- Alex Bonczyk had two hits and now has 41 on the season. He is one of just 10 players in the league to have 40-plus hits.
- Arturo Reyes, Hunter Virant and Shane Zeile played in the All-Star Game for the Sweets.
- Reyes tossed a scoreless fourth inning.
- Virant allowed one hit in 2/3 of relief. He was named the Top Prospect on the East squad by the MLB Scouting Bureau.
- Zeile went 1-for-4 in the game with a single. He was also in the Home Run Derby, finishing third. He hit five in the first round, one in the second and lost a swing-off with Austin Byler, 3-1.
- Tyler Billen will start for the Sweets tonight. He is 1-0 with a 4.26 ERA on the summer. It is his first start of the summer. He has allowed just one run over his last nine innings, spanning four appearances.

Big inning dooms Sweets

Walla Walla built a 6-3 lead after six innings but Klamath Falls scored eight runs in the top of the seventh to earn its 11-straight win, 12-6, on Saturday.

Now for some notes from around the ballpark:
- The Gems have won 11 consecutive games and 18-of-19 after starting 2-18. Their win, coupled with Bend's loss to Bellingham, gave them sole possession of second place in the West Division.
- The Sweets lost for the third-straight game and are 0-5 against the Gems this year.
- Spencer O'Neil had a big night for the Sweets, picking up three hits and two RBI. He now has 28 RBI on the season.
- The RBIs were his first since July 11 against Cowlitz. He is tied with Elliot Stewart for the most RBI in team history.
- Shane Zeile collected a hit for the seventh consecutive game. His fifth-inning home run made it 6-3. It was his fourth of the summer. He has 14 extra-base hits, the most on the team.
- Alex Bonczyk had two hits from the leadoff spot. He is one shy of reaching the 40-hit mark.
- Kris Paulino also had two hits and worked a bases-loaded walk. He leads the team in walks with 15.
- Tyler Roberts lasted six-plus innings on Saturday, allowing four runs. It was just the second time this year that Roberts had allowed more than two runs in a start.
- As a team, the Sweets are hitting just .261 with men in scoring position. That number drops to .193 with two outs.
- Joe Arlt will start the series finale on Sunday. Arlt allowed two runs over five innings last Sunday against the Gems.

Gems take game one

The Gems jumped out to a 5-0 lead and cruised to a 10-1 victory on Friday night against the Sweets.

Now for some notes from around the ballpark:
- The Gems have now won 17-of-18 and are now 19-19 on the year. They started the season 2-18. They are a half game out of the playoffs in the West Division.
- After winning the first two games against Cowlitz last week, the Sweets have dropped seven-of-eight. They are 15-23 and eight games out of a playoff spot.
- Luke West had his longest outing of the summer on Friday, tossing 4.1 innings. He entered in the third and pitched through the seventh. He allowed three runs on seven hits and struck out six.
- Shane Zeile had two hits for the third-straight game and has hit safely in six consecutive. He collected his eighth double and has now doubled in each of his last four games.
- Beau Fraser picked up the only Sweets RBI with a double in the third inning. It was his first RBI of the season as a Sweet.
- J.J. Robinson made his second appearance on the mound, tossing the final two innings. He allowed two runs on five hits and struck out two.
- Tyler Roberts will start tonight. He is 1-3 with a 3.15 ERA. He has allowed two runs or less in all but one of his starts this summer. He allowed just two runs over seven innings last Saturday against Klamath Falls but found himself on the short end of a 2-0 score.

Crazy night ends in loss for Sweets

Two separate lengthy delays highlighted Thursday's series finale between the Sweets and the Black Bears. Cowlitz came out on top, 5-2, and won the series, 2-1.

Now for some notes from around the ballpark:
- The Sweets fall to 15-22 on the year with the loss. They are currently seven games out of a playoff spot.
- The Sweets welcome Klamath Falls to Borleske Stadium for a three-game series this weekend. They were swept in Klamath Falls last weekend.
- The Gems are the hottest team in the league, having won 16-of-17 after starting 2-18.
- On Thursday, Shane Zeile had two hits for the second-straight night and also drove in a run.
- Nick Vilter added a sac fly RBI in the first inning to give the Sweets their only lead of the night.
- Zach Brandon fell to 0-4 on the summer, allowing three runs on six hits over three innings.
- Joe Arlt tossed two scoreless innings of relief.
- Garrett Tygerson pitched a scoreless ninth.
- Thursday also featured a 40-minute rain delay before the game started and a 30-minute delay in the bottom of the ninth as the lights went out due to a power surge.
- Matt Imhof will start tonight for the Sweets and will be in search of his first win of the summer. He is 0-3 with a 5.85 ERA.

Pitching helps Sweets snap skid

Four Sweets pitchers struck out 12 batters and allowed just one run on eight hits in a 5-1 victory over Cowlitz on Wednesday. The win snapped a five-game losing streak for the Sweets.

Now for some notes from around the ballpark:
- The Sweets improved their record to 15-21 with the win on Wednesday. They moved within seven games of Bellingham for the final playoff spot in the East Division.
- Arturo Reyes started for the Sweets and lasted just 4.1 innings. He allowed one run on four hits, walked four and struck out six. It is the sixth time in seven starts that Reyes has allowed one run or less in an outing.
- It was also his shortest outing of the summer. He worked out of two bases-loaded jams, including a fourth-inning jam in which he struck out back-to-back batters to end the inning.
- Tyler Billen came on in the fifth and struck out the first four batters he faced. He ended up going 2.2 scoreless innings, allowing just two hits. He's allowed just one run over his last nine innings.
- Doug Ashby tossed a scoreless eighth and has now worked in three consecutive games. He has not allowed a run or walked a batter in his last four outings.
- Simon Anderson tossed a scoreless ninth for the Sweets.
- Kalani Brackenridge had his hitting streak come to a close on Wednesday. It ended at 12 games.
- Alex Bonczyk had three hits from the leadoff spot and also scored two runs. He hit his team-leading third triple of the summer in the seventh inning. Bonczyk now has seven hits in his last three games.
- Shane Zeile picked up two hits and drove in two runs. Zeile has hit safely in each of his last four games and all but three games this summer.
- Marc Garza's RBI double in the fourth broke a 1-1 tie. It was his first RBI since June 11 against Bend.
- The Sweets have six players with 12 or more RBI this season and nine that have score 10 or more runs.
- Zach Brandon will start on Thursday and is in search of his first victory of the summer. He is 0-3 with a 6.05 ERA in six appearances. He allowed two runs on five hits over four innings in his last outing on Friday against Klamath Falls.

Black Bear out-pitch Sweets

Three Cowlitz pitchers combined to limit the Sweets to just one run on five hits in a 2-1 victory on Tuesday night. Nick Paxton drove in both runs, including the game-winning run in the top of the fourth.

Now for some notes from around the ballpark:
- The Sweets fell to 14-21 with the loss and have dropped their last five games. The Sweets have an identical record through 35 games as they did last year.
- The loss, coupled with Bellingham's victory, moved the Sweets eight games back in the playoff chase.
- Kalani Brackenridge doubled in his first at-bat and has now hit safely in 12 consecutive games. It is the longest streak on the Sweets this summer.
- Brackenridge also scored the only run of the game for the Sweets.
- Hunter Virant started for the Sweets and gave up two runs on just two hits over six innings. He walked two and struck out six. He has allowed two runs or less in all four of his starts this summer. Virant suffered his first loss.
- It was also released on Monday that Virant, Arturo Reyes and Spencer O'Neil will represent the Sweets in the 2012 WCL All-Star Game presented by NAPA Auto Parts.
- O'Neil was voted in by the fans.
- Doug Ashby tossed a scoreless seventh inning and has now recorded three-straight scoreless outings.
- Garrett Tygerson pitched the final two innings, allowing just one hit on the night. He has allowed just one run over his last six innings.
- Reyes will start tonight for the Sweets. He leads the league with two complete games and his 2.18 ERA currently ranks sixth in the league. With six innings tonight, he will also take over the league-lead in innings pitched.
- Reyes has allowed one run or less in five of his six starts this summer. He allowed a run on three hits in a no decision against Cowlitz last week.